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Permalink Reply by Dave B on September 6, 2019 at 4:17pm

This is the diagram I have followed.. 

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Permalink Reply by Poorness Studios on September 6, 2019 at 9:30pm

I totally agree with Pick on the tin top. Washers or blocks... even some electrical tape could do wonders in a situation like this.

As for the question about the tone pot, it doesn't really matter how you wire it as long as the middle lug is used somehow. Some people swear by doing it the way in the diagram above, others put the capacitor between the two pots (like the diagram below). It really doesn't matter as long as the signal goes thru the capacitor/pot then to ground.

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Permalink Reply by the anonymous pick on September 6, 2019 at 9:13pm

Depending on the  amount of  "metal" in the  "tin".  you may need to separate the  pickup  , pots, and  jack from any direct contact with  the tin .  ie: rubber washers , and  wood block mounting the  pickup. etc . if your pickup touches  the tin , it may  make the entire top act like a pickup , and sound like a piezo .. then again , you may like that sound ,  and it  may accent the  tin  reso  better .. then again .. maybe not .  .In my opinion ,  it is best to always separate , but  if you build it so you can test  both ways with out obligation,  you can  decide your self .  ;-)

 hope that helps .

 

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Permalink Reply by Dave B on September 7, 2019 at 4:10am

Thanks, after I string it up i will test it and see what happens, I did plug it in and it tapped the top of the tin and it sounded a bit like a stomp box drum so I guess the whole top is acting like a pickup as it is.
The volume knob worked but the tone didn't seem to do anything although I couldn't really tell when tapping it like a drum.
If I was to use washers to isolate the Jack and pots would I also need to make the hole bigger so the shafts doesn't touch when going through the tin? I did read somewhere that tin tops actually help with the wiring as the tin grounds everything for you.
Should I try isolating only the pickup first with a wood/plastic surround?

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Permalink Reply by the anonymous pick on September 7, 2019 at 8:16pm

It's just better to isolate  everything everywhere  (shafts included) . There is a chance that your "tin" contains more aluminum  than metal , so even if you   incorporated the lid as a ground , it wouldnt work well in that case , And if it is more "metal" than tin or aluminium , The pickup field would change or  be run through the whole top , and you risk weird  loop issues etc .. with the pots and jack.  etc etc etc . 

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Permalink Reply by Cause the Blue rat on September 7, 2019 at 1:27am

Actually it does matter what lug your cap is soldered too. The good news is they both work. But they will sound and work slightly different. Try it one way. Then try it the other. 

Anonymous gave great advice. Isolate! 

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Permalink Reply by Dave B on September 22, 2019 at 6:30pm

thanks for the help I have mounted the humbucker into the plastic case it came with so is now not touching any metal. I have not yet isolated the pots or jack as wanted to see how it would sound and it is all working well including the tone control.

However it does seem to sound like it has a lot of delay or reverb (not sure which as this is all new to me)  ie if I strum the open high G it rings out for a good 7 seconds and drowns out any tune i am playing is this normal ? or could this be due to not isolating the pots from the tin?

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